Disclaimer: While the attempt has been made to be medically accurate, some artistic license has been taken, and statements made by Carlisle are not to be regarded as authoritative.

Recognizable characters and plotlines are the property of Stephenie Meyer; all original characters and story © 2016 FemaleChauvinist.

Do not post without permission. Do not copy/print without including the above disclaimer in its entirety.

A/N: I got the idea for this story from two events in Eclipse; Bella's written conversation with Edward about what he'd do if her "bad luck" crashed the plane, and Jacob's injuries in the fight (which he didn't get in my version, so, no, I'm not making him go through that twice!). Barbie

P.S. By the way, I really had no idea how to go about crashing the plane… B(FC)

Chapter One: Skydive

January 2014

Nessie & Jacob returning from honeymoon

Nessie

Jake wanted to support me himself. He had allowed Daddy to open a bank account in my name, but only on condition that we use it only in emergency. But despite his explaining to me that I would have to be careful what I spent, couldn't buy anything I wanted whenever I wanted it like I was used to doing, we were flying first class.

"Economy wasn't designed for seven-foot werewolves, Ness," he had growled at me when I teasingly pointed out the inconsistency. (He wasn't really seven feet tall…but six nine was close enough.) "We can cut back on our food budget if we need to save money."

I had laughed, because if we cut back anywhere, it wasn't likely to be on food. Jake ate his share, my share, and more when he could get it.

We had spent two weeks in a little cottage on the beach, and now we were flying home.

Home. Of course I would follow Jake anywhere and be happy, and it would be nice to live somewhere where the sun was out more often than not. But I had never been away from my family; I wondered if I was really ready to try.

Of course, I was careful not to think like that when I was touching Jacob's face. After all, I would be happy as long as I was with him.

I turned to smile at him, and found him listening with his head tilted, the expression on his face reminding me of Papa's when he was focusing on someone's heartbeat and breathing. "Jake?" I questioned.

He turned toward me. "Do the engines sound funny to you, Ness?"

I shrugged. "Not really." But his question made me uneasy. Jake's hearing might not be as good as Papa's — or even as his own in wolf form — but it was better than a human's, and he did know engines.

"Well…guess it's just my imagination. But —" He broke off, as even I heard the sudden silence of one of the engines. Even the humans must have heard that.

Jake swore softly under his breath, and I looked at him with wide eyes. "Jacob…?"

He forced a smile. "Don't worry, Ness; you're safe with me. Guard dog, remember?" He wrapped his arm around me, and I buried my face in his shoulder as the stewardess came on the intercom asking everyone to return to their seats and fasten their seatbelts. She didn't refer to the problem, but I could hear the suppressed fear in her voice.

If I listened hard, I could hear the pilots' voices in the cockpit. They were trying unsuccessfully to restart the engine; the others were overheating…and from the look on Jake's face, they didn't sound too healthy, either. One of the pilots was radioing the nearest airport requesting an emergency landing.

I had to stifle a scream when the second engine sputtered to silence.

The captain's voice came over the intercom then, surprisingly calm despite the fear I heard. He assured us that though we had lost power in two engines, the two remaining were sufficient to get us to an airport.

"Nessie?" Jake's voice was low and urgent. "Renesmée, listen to me."

I lifted my head from his chest; he almost never used my full name. "What?" I whispered.

"Those two engines aren't gonna make it as far as an airport."

I pressed my hand to his face, too scared to speak. Jake, why are they quitting?

"I don't know…it doesn't matter. Knowing why won't help us. Nessie, you're gonna hafta trust me."

I looked up at him with wide eyes, and then bit all the way through my lip as the two remaining engines conked out within seconds of each other. My mouth filled with blood.

"Don't, Ness!" Jacob said sharply, a hand on my lip as if to pull it away from my teeth.

I won't — I'm not thirsty.

The captain's voice as he spoke again was tense, strained. We had lost power in all four engines, he said, but we had enough altitude and momentum to land on the nearby interstate highway. He urged us to remain calm and to brace for impact.

"Nessie," Jacob said, low and quick, "as soon as we get low enough I'm kicking the wall out. Hang onto me and we'll jump."

But the other passengers, Jake! Won't the hole affect them?

"No one's gonna survive this, Ness," Jacob said grimly.

But we could…couldn't we? I don't know why going down with the plane seemed so much safer than jumping out of it; I wasn't even afraid of heights.

I felt Jacob shake his head under my hand. "If the plane bursts into flames on impact, even your parents wouldn't be able to walk away."

But it won't — he said we could land on the highway.

"No way. We're losing altitude too fast — and he knows it. He just wants to keep everyone calm; not have a panic."

I swallowed hard. All right, Jake. But wouldn't it be better if I kicked out the wall?

He growled at me. "On your life, Ness!"

He reached to unbuckle my seatbelt, then snapped his own open and sat tense, watching the ground through the window. "Be ready," he hissed at me, standing up. In one instant, he drove his knee through the window, then grabbed the edge of the opening and ripped out a section of wall. I could smell his blood where the glass had cut him, but the cuts were healing even as he reached down and pulled me into his arms. "Hang on, Ness!"

Jake…will we really be safe?

"Nothing will hurt you, Ness…I promise." And before the humans even had time to realize what was happening, he jumped through the opening.

Next chapter coming next week!

I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know!

Please note that I have internet access only once a week, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. If you have questions regarding my Twilight alternate history, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie